


This is Halloween

by randomnessUnicorn



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/M, Gen, Half Vulcan, Halloween, Multi, Mystery, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-07
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-11-26 05:03:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20924609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/randomnessUnicorn/pseuds/randomnessUnicorn
Summary: The most horrific and mysterious period of the year is coming.Halloween arrives even on DS9 and it brings oddity, surprises and scary things none of the crew expects.Nog, Jake and their new friend V' Lock want to create a special Holo-program for Halloween and invite everyone there so they can have fun and celebrate it together but something will go wrong with it. Even the holo-monsters they created will seem more real than they could ever imagine.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, welcome to my new fanfiction.
> 
> I don’t know how to explain this story, it’s hard, but I wanted to create something special for Halloween and this month.
> 
> Here the crew will deal with several problems and monstrosity. The spirit of Halloween will take possession of the station and we will see if our heroes will be able to win against the darkness and the horror.
> 
> In this story, there are also some of my OCs, they are three, I’ve already written about one of them in my other fanfiction called “Unspoken”: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20689949/chapters/49143200
> 
> Hope you can enjoy.

The station was full of aliens, new faces, faces he had never seen or perhaps he would know eventually.

V’ Lock Eisim Nema didn’t have much experience, not yet. He had moved here since a few months and didn’t have a lot of trouble integrating himself in this new environment.

V’ Lock was promoted as a counsellor, he graduated last year from the faculty of medicine of the Starfleet, in the branch of psychology and he achieved excellent results.

No one would ever say he was a psychologist. No, a Vulcan could not be a psychologist, a person who worked with other people’s emotions. It was completely illogical. It would have been strange, if he was a complete Vulcan because he was only half of it, his mother’s genes were Vulcan, his father’s genes were Betazoid, and that made things more interesting but also very complicated.

People often saw the profession of psychologist with antipathy and prejudice, he didn’t know why, but many people were afraid of psychologists and doctors in general. It was a kind of discrimination, it was unfair, and so frustrating, and his appearance made this situation even more problematical.

His short, black, but too curly and ruffled hair, and his pointed ears, his high, square eyebrows, made him so Vulcan but, after a more accurate observation, people noticed his eyes were blacker than normal, so dark, big and deep, they were not the eyes of a Vulcan. Alternatively, they saw his facial expressions, they were too emotional for a logical being as a Vulcan and so people wondered where the trick was. What was his problem? People should have been used to hybrids by now.

Here things were different, perhaps because of all this diversity; few people had asked him inappropriate questions. There were so many new species here that an alien like him looked normal. V’ Lock liked this multicultural environment.

V’ Lock decided to embrace both cultures, both the Betazoid and the Vulcan philosophies, even though it wasn’t always easy, especially when he was a child. As if the emotions and logic in him were constantly fighting to get control over his mind, but over time he had been able to find a stability and live with both sides. To accept his contradiction.

He even made friends here, and discovered that he was not the only hybrid of the station. He had many surprises.

V’ Lock had met a lovely young woman named Ziyal, she was a half Cardassian and half Bejorian hybrid. A particular combination.

Sometimes, he met her during lunch, she was a delightful person, and maybe she was the only one who could truly understand him, at least, understand his state of mind as hybrid.

Ziyal was often with the tailor of the station, Mr. Garak, he was the only Cardassian on DS9. V’ Lock had not yet figured out if Ziyal and Garak had a romantic relationship or if they were only intimate friends.

Either way, V’ Lock found interesting to have conversation with them for the simple fact that his empathic abilities were annulled and useless around them.

Betazoids and Vulcans’ mental power never worked with Cardassian’s brain, it was a fact. Consequently, he was unable to read their emotions or even their thoughts, but he should not have done it because it was forbidden, an invasion of privacy, it was against the rules of Betazed but he was sure he wouldn’t be able to read their minds.

It was strange to get in touch with people he couldn’t read. It filled him with curiosity, but he felt also a little vulnerable because he was so used to perceive other people’s emotions, especially when he dealt with his patients, and so he became a little worried and paranoid.

V’ Lock got used to it and he accepted that his mental power could not work every time. His Betazoid side suffered a lot for this but it would make things more fascinating, because knowing new people and new things about the people he met was always interesting.

He moved in Quark’s bar and noticed that there were only Dr. Bashir and Ziyal already sitting and talking.

“Hi, do I bother you?” V’ Lock said but sat down before they could answer. It was just courtesy, only to be noticed by them.

“Good morning, Eisim.” she greeted him and he had not yet understood why Ziyal used his Betazoid name to refer to him because everyone usually called him only V ‘Lock, he liked that she was so different from the others.

“Oh, hi, Councillor V’ Lock. Are you okay?” Julian asked in a friendly tone.

Vulcans usually used only one name but, since he was also half Betazoid, he possessed two names and the Betazed surname of his father –because his Vulcan mother’s surname was too hard to pronounce-.

“I feel perfectly fine, thanks.” He answered and he always found very hilarious to use the word ‘feel’ when he spoke since, at a first look, people would say he was only a Vulcan and so using the word ‘feel’ was perplexing. Unlike a normal Vulcan, he had a sense of humour and people’s reactions entertained him a lot when they found his true nature out.

“Good, I think we should order now.” said Julian calling a Ferengi so they could start their lunch.

“Garak won’t keep us company today because he’s very busy with his job. His last client is very demanding.” Ziyal said, smiling sweetly.

“Yes, I understand, but, unluckily, I’ll have to leave you soon because I have to meet Jake and Nog, they have an idea for a new hologram program,” he explained to them.

“Oh, really? I didn’t know you were able to create Holodeck’s programs.” she asked curiously.

“No, I’m not able, Nog’s dad will help us, he’s a great engineer and then I could learn something from him. I’ve always desired to learn how to program and be able to create my own Holodeck’s games so I took the chance.” V’ Lock confessed.

He was not an engineer and so he had no idea of how a program worked but it would be interesting to learn and he knew, Nog’s dad was gentle and patient, and so he would find this experience very satisfying.

“What kind of program it is?” Julian asked with interest.

“It regards a famous terrestrial Holiday, if I remember correctly, it’s called Halloween.” He said, even if he had already heard about it but never celebrated it with his human friends.

“What’s it?” Ziyal turned to Julian and observed them with a confusing look in her eyes.

“It’s an old terrestrial celebration that happens on 31 October. I didn’t imagine Jake and Nog were interested in it.” Julian said while he was reading the menu the Ferengi gave him.

“Yes, Jake told me that he’s searching for inspiration and he wants to broaden his horizons as writer and he thinks it can be a good chance to write something different.” V’ Lock explained and he found this idea very intriguing and so he decided to participate.

“Oh, does he want to write some horror story?” Julian asked, chuckling.

“Horror? What is it?” Ziyal asked, confused.

“It’s a literary genre, it regards supernatural and scary stuff, it is meant to freak people out.” Julian told her.

“I don’t understand. How can people have fun like this? Do they like to be scared?” Ziyal said in an innocent tone of voice.

“Yes, some people like that” explained V’ Lock, “And some of them are attracted by mysterious and horrific things. I think fear is one of the most fascinating and interesting emotions to study and observe.” He said and, as psychologist, he had studied it and even spoken with people who had several problems with their fear but he could not talk about it.

“Yes, it’s an interesting genre, there are many books and movies about that. Do you think you are brave enough for it, Ziyal?” Julian asked her, grinning amused.

“I don’t know. Life is already so hard so I don’t see the point in this. Are you scared of something, Eisim?” she asked him.

“Uhm, I don’t really know. I don’t think. My Vulcan side protects me by traumas; I don’t know how to explain. When I lived on Vulcan, I learnt special technics that allow me to control my emotions and so I am able to govern and suppress my fear or any other feelings any time. It’s like a switch and I can decide to feel or just ignore it. That’s all.” He said in a serious tone, even if in so many people’s ears, it could sound absurd but it was true. Not even Vulcans were born with their cold and austere self-control.

“Oh, I understand, it’s peculiar… It seems hard.” Ziyal said, perplexed.

“Well, it’s normal for me. Natural.” V’Lock said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Have you lived all your life on Vulcan?” Julian asked him, curious.

“No, I lived there up to the age of 13 and then I lived on Betazed for three years and then I moved to Earth to study and I graduated there. Well, I’ve lived in so many different places.” He said, nodding and speaking in a neutral tone of voice.

“And now you’re here in the other part of the galaxy.” Julian told him, smiling.

“Exactly.” V’Lock nodded.

“So you already know the holiday of Halloween?” asked Julian.

“Yes, despite the modern society where we live, some people still celebrate it. I’ve never celebrated it, I don’t know why, maybe I haven’t understand it enough. I should say it is totally illogical but I’m very curious as well. It’s strange.” V’ Lock said, even explaining his contradictory view was hard for him.

“You want to try anyway, it’s great, you’re more open than many Vulcans I’ve met, they are so arrogant sometimes.” Julian said, sighing.

“Julian…” Ziyal said to Julian with a little severity.

“Yes, they are arrogant, then I’m Betazoid too and so that’s why I’m more open.” He answered and he knew how Vulcans could be annoying, he remembered it very well.

Living on Vulcan, for V’ Lock, had not always been easy and even being accepted by them was never easy.

“See? He says they are arrogant, too.” Julian said to Ziyal.

“By the way, would you like to participate? We may try the Halloween’s Program together, I’m sure, Jake and Nog won’t mind.” V’ Lock proposed showing an enthusiast smile.

“It would be great. I will come back to my childhood.” Julian chuckled.

“I don’t know… Is it so scary?” Ziyal asked.

“Well, it depends on you but it’s not real, it’s the holodeck and so the monsters are only holograms.” V’ Lock explained.

“Monsters?” Ziyal repeated, surprised.

“Yes, every kind of monster.” Said Julian.

“Think about it and you are free to invite whoever you want.” V’ Lock said, “You have time to decided, since the program is not ready yet.”

“Of course, we’ll tell you.” Julian told him.

“I would be glad and then we can talk about it later, I have to go now. Jake, Nog and his father are waiting for me.” V’ Lock stood up and nodded.

“Well, have fun!” Julian told him, “We see you later.”

“Fine, goodbye. Have a great day, Eisim.” Ziyal said, smiling.

V’ Lock left Quark's bar and went to his appointment with the human Jake and the two Ferengis.

Actually, he was very curious about it and it would be the first time he celebrated a human Holiday, he was always open to make new experiences, and this was an occasion he could not waste. He still had to learn a lot about this holiday and so he hoped, Jake would satisfy his curiosity.

New experiences even meant new chances to learn something new about themselves.


	2. The party must go on!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even this chapter is made of several interactions between the characters but I think it's important too.
> 
> Here I introduce another of my OCs, she is a Vulcan girl, I hope you will appreciate her and the entire chapter.
> 
> Enjoy the reading!

V ‘Lock had always felt different from all the other Vulcans. He was too emotional, and therefore irrational. Too aggressive and, consequently, undisciplined. Too different. Nobody would ever be enough for the Vulcans, not even a person who shared part of their genes.

No, V’ Lock was not good enough for them but he did not care anymore.

Dr. Bashir was right; they were arrogant, even if their arrogance was justified. Vulcan people were strong, long-lived, pacifists, rational and wise. They could afford to be arrogant, but V’ Lock did not believe it was a quality to be proud of.

When he was a child, the situation in which he lived was even more dramatic.

Vulcan children were insensitive and rough, because they were not trained enough and were unable to control their emotional impulses and this made them cruel and insensitive. They were imperfect.

V’ Lock never got along with those children because, despite his countless attempts, it was useless. He did not have many pleasant memories of his childhood on Vulcan.

Right now, V 'Lock was heading for the holodeck where Jake and Nog waited for him.

He envied the friendship between Jake and Nog; V’ Lock wished he had a friendship like that when he was a child. Someone who could really understand him. However, it was not the proper time to get lost in these illogical and melancholic thoughts.

Then, when he arrived to the holodeck, he greeted the two friends.

“Hello!” said V’ Lock.

"Hi, pointy ears.” Nog told him, jokingly.

“I liked more half-elf.” V’ Lock replied.

V’ Lock recalled that Jake had convinced his Ferengi friend to watch a terrestrial fantasy trilogy about the adventures of a Hobbit, whose task was to destroy an evil ring. In that story, there were the elves who had pointed ears and V’ Lock found them more interesting than the other pointed ears beings he knew, which were a little too logical for his tastes.

“Hello, friend.” Jake greeted him, too.

“Hi, Jake.” He replied.

“Hi, V 'Lock.” Nog’s father said.

“Hello, Mr. Rom.” V’ Lock greeted him, “How’s the work going?”

“Good but slow, it will take some time.” Rom replied.

"If Jake didn’t have a thousand ideas in his head the job would have been over yet.” Nog said in an almost whiny tone, but he was smiling.

“It’s good to have so many ideas, isn’t it?” V’ Lock said.

“Yes, but we don’t have a lot of time.” Nog replied as he watched his father work.

“The creative process is often much longer than the actual creation of a work.” Jake spoke in a professional tone, with emphasis in his voice.

“What ideas do you have?” V’ Lock asked to Jake.

“I would ruin the surprise if I told you, but I can tell you that I was inspired by various terrestrial horror literature and also by several movies I watched. Obviously, I didn’t even ignore the numerous urban legends of the Earth.” Jake spoke, enthusiastically.

“It sounds very interesting.” V’ Lock commented.

“He must always complicate his life with the most absurd oddities.” Nog said, “But that’s why he’s my friend.”

“Of course, I’m sure you’ll like it too, V’ Lock.” Jake told him.

“I don’t think people have a lot of fun on Vulcan.” Nog said, smirking.

“Well, they would define this festivity as illogical and a waste of time. Fear is such a primitive emotion, like any other, after all.” V’ Lock explained, “It is unwise that some people decide to be frightened so spontaneously.”

“That’s why it’s so funny. Then you can test your limits.” Jake answered.

“Honestly, I didn’t understand it at first too. What is the purpose of horror?” V’ Lock asked, curious.

“It’s a way to exorcise your fears, and experience things you couldn’t do in reality.” Jake said.

“I don’t think you want to be chased by a monster or a serial killer in real life. It’s the human way of experiencing strong and problematic emotions without being personally involved.” Nog made the concept clearer.

“Ah, interesting. So it’s a way to relieve aggressive impulses, I understand. It is an excellent empathy exercise. It can help to identify oneself in the fears of others; it is a chance to meet the darker side of oneself. I find it fascinating.” V’ Lock thought that this psychological side of horror was very interesting.

“Previously, our project was different. We just wanted to create a typical human district decorated in the style of Halloween where people could celebrate it and children could do trick or treat.” Jake explained.

“What is trick or treat?” V’ Lock asked, confused.

“It’s a cool Halloween tradition.” Jake started explaining, “Kids usually do it, but even adults can, they wear masks and go from house to house at night, knocking at every door and ask for sweets. If their hosts don’t give them treat, then they’ll get the trick.”

“Oh, it is peculiar. So you want to dress up?” V’ Lock asked them, raising his eyebrow.

“Yes, why not. But you could dress up as an elf, since you already got the right ears.” Nog said, chuckling.

“It will be fun! People already dress up in the holodeck. This time they have to dress like monsters and scary creatures.” Jake said, giggling.

“So I could dress up like a zombie elf.” V’ Lock asked, amused by this idea.

Exactly. I see you understood the spirit, “Jake said.

“At first, our idea was simpler and then we expanded it and we put more horror elements.” Nog explained.

“You know things like haunted houses, ghost amusement parks and other scary things.” Jake told with enjoyment.

“We could even organize a contest for the best costume.” Nog proposed.

“Can you really sew?” Jake asked, doubtful.

“We could ask Garak to do it for us.” Nog answered.

“It makes no sense to participate and win with a costume another person made for us.” V’ Lock said, perplexed.

“Ah, it’s not cheating. We are not all expert tailors.” Nog said, rolling his eyes.

'And then the important thing is to have fun.” Jake said.

“Yes, we can ask the Cardassian to make us the costumes, this party will bring him many clients and so a lot of profit, he cannot refuse such advantageous offer.” Nog said, rubbing his hands, something that the Ferengi did every time they talked about money or at least that was V’ Lock’s impression .

“It will be a fantastic party; I hope more people will be able to come.“ Jake said, enthusiastic.

"Invite everyone you know!” Nog said to V’ Lock.

"Of course.” he replied.

“Mr. Rom, is the program complete?” Jake asked Nog’s father.

“The work will certainly not be finished for today.” Rom answered, “You have to be patient. And anyway, Chief O'Brian is waiting for me. I cannot work for your program all day. I have my job, too.”

“But the program must be finished by tomorrow.” Jake said worriedly.

“Yes, we have so many things to organize and there is so little time.” Nog complained, “I still have to send invitations, book the holodeck and negotiate a fair price with my uncle Quark, he surely will make us pay lots of pieces of gold.”

“I also have to order the costumes and prepare all the decorations.” Jake said, nervous.

“I’m sorry, guys. You will have to do it alone. The station is full of experienced engineers and you will surely find someone who can help you.” Rom said with a desolate tone.

“I know a good engineer.“ V’ Lock spoke with composure and Jake and Nog looked at him with a curious expression.

"Really? And did you wait until now to tell us?” Nog answered, annoyed.

“I didn’t think it was necessary until now.” V’ Lock answered, he looked so calm compered to his two friends.

“Who is this engineer?” Jake asked.

“She’s a friend of mine, her name is T'luvith.” V’ Lock told them.

“A Vulcan?” Nog said in a perplexed tone.

“Well, then ask her if she could help us, please. So we could finally terminate this program.” Jake said, speaking with the enthusiasm that seemed lost some minutes ago.

“Do you really think a Vulcan woman will help us? I don’t see logic in this. And she won’t see logic in a human and weird celebration like Halloween.” Nog said suspiciously.

“I will give her logical reasons to do it.” V 'Lock said, “She’s more understanding than she appears. I will talk to her right now. She should be at her quarters at this hour.”

“Well, she could save us. Thank you so much, V’ Lock and thank your friend from us.” Jake said.

“See, I was sure you would find someone.” Rom said.

“Then I’m going to talk to her. I’ll see you later.” V’ Lock said.

“Sure friend. Bye.” Jake said goodbye.

“Okay, see you later, pointy ears.” Nog told him with a chuckle.

***

T'luvith was one of those people he wanted to invite to the party even if he knew; it would be hard to convince her.

V’ Lock had met T'luvith in the Starfleet Academy even though they followed different courses and at that period, they were not even friends.

Clearly, she did not consider him as a friend; it was difficult for a true Vulcan to define someone in such intimate way.

T'luvith was a quiet person, she was not arrogant, she was not as the Vulcans of his childhood and she always listened to him. Even if she did not talk about herself but she was a great observer and listener.

In addition, she had never defined him as bizarre or discriminated him because of his Betazoid side. For her, there was no logic in the act of denigrating him for his genetic heritage, and there was no logic in discrimination. She surely was more mind-opened than others of her species were.

V’ Lock knew that T'luvith’s stepfather was human but her natural parents were both Vulcans. He did not know why her Vulcan mother had chosen to marry a human man. He never asked her, it was not his business. He did not think their friendship was already deep enough to confess to him her private world.

V’ Lock found it out by mistake, seeing her converse with a man at Quark’s bar. Only afterwards, to his question of who was that man and his joke, because, at first, V’ Lock thought the mysterious man might be a romantic interest of T'luvith, she replied that the man was only her stepfather.

T'luvith did not understand his joke; she was not able to understand the human humour or any other kind of humour, but she would find interesting to comprehend the logic behind it.

It was hard for V’ Lock to empathize with a Vulcan because they were able to hide their feelings very well, they looked like empty shells and this made him uncomfortable at first but then he got used to their lack of emotions and he realize that he was asking too much.

Unlike her, he was able to read human’s emotions and so he had understand immediately that man could be an important figure for her but there was no logical proof he could be her stepfather so it surprised him a lot when she told him the truth.

According to his calculations, T'luvith should have been in her quarters to meditate.

He knew all his friends’ schedules, someone would define this behaviour as disturbing but he did not like to bother people and so he visited them when they were not working or doing something important.

V’ Lock walked to T'luvith’s quarters and pushed the button of her front door.

The door opened after exactly half a minute and the Vulcan girl welcomed him.

“Greetings, V’ Lock.” she greeted him and her tone was neutral and low.

Even her appearance was different from a normal Vulcan, her eyes were still as black as petroleum just like her hair but hers was longer and she usually had a long dark braid that hung down over her shoulder. He still did not discover the logical reason of her choice. There must have been one, and it could not only be fashion.

“Hi, T'luvith. Is everything okay?” he asked her.

He knew that she considered this question senseless, especially for a Vulcan, V’ Lock thought the same thing but it was only a social habit.

“Normal, I guess.” she replied.

This was the weirdest answer she could give him but it was pretty accurate.

“Me too” he said.

Then T'luvith went inside her own quarters and he followed her.

“What can I do for you?” she asked him straight to the point.

"We are organizing a party.” He said.

“A party? What kind of party?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s a human celebration called Halloween, do you know it?” he asked her.

“Ah, isn’t that human holiday where people dress up like monsters and ask for candies all over the town?” she spoke in her usual neutral tone.

Clearly, she already knew it and so he should have not wasted his time explaining it to her. Her stepfather was human and so maybe she knew more about human’s culture than he could ever know.

“Yes, exactly!” he said

“Are you surprised?” she asked.

“Yes, a little… Anyhow, we are creating a Holo-program, well, Nog’s dad is programming it but he is very busy with his job and cannot complete it.” he explained.

“And so… Do you want me to help you to terminate it?” she asked him.

“Yes, can you read my mind?” he said, took by surprise.

“No, I’m not a Betazoid but it was obvious, I’m an engineer and it needs an engineer to make a holo-program and since Mr. Rom cannot do it. I just figured it out.” She explained in a calm tone.

“You figured it out right.” He said, “We need that program to be complete for tomorrow, but we don’t know anybody able enough to do it.”

“I understand.” She replied and seemed lost in her thoughts, “I could take a look but I do not make any promises.”

“Really? Will you help us?” he said, smiling but then he came back serious.

“I did not say that, I only said that I will take a look.” She explained again.

“I thought you found it illogical.” He told her.

“Yes, I do. I could consider it as a training, it regards to program, and it is part of my job, so I could learn something new.” She explained, “It is as simple as it seems.”

This was her way to say that she only had fun programming, he understood, but she could not simply say that it was her hobby. It was not so Vulcan.

“Well, so let’s go.” he said.

“Right now?” she asked.

“Yes, Nog and Jake are waiting and they are desperate.” He told her and did not care if he looked weirdly emotional, “You’re going to save our party.”

“Oh, if you say so…” she replied.

Then the two of them walked toward the Holodeck where they would find Jake and Nog.


	3. Ordinary day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter won't be boring but I promise that things will get more interesting from the 4th.
> 
> This week has been very stressful for me and I'm not writing as I would like. I'm tired.
> 
> Then I really like writing Jake and Nog. They are very funny.
> 
> I hope you find my OCs interesting.

V ‘Lock was surprised that his friend T'luvith agreed to help him so easily.

Definitely, he did not know her as he thought, she was not a predictable person and she had often surprised him. It was a good treat but it made him so confused.

T'luvith did not talk the whole way to the holodeck, it made him uncomfortable, since V’ Lock did not like long silences especially between friends. T'luvith did not consider him as a friend, he was sure about it, and she was still Vulcan and therefore was not inclined to make useless speeches or be so intimate with someone she did not know well.

The holodeck was not far away and the silence would have been over soon.

They finally reached their destination, the hatch opened, and they entered.

“We’re here.” V’ Lock said, and noticed that Jake and Nog were still there to discuss their project.

“Welcome back, V 'Lock.” Jake greeted him.

“Hi, half blood.” Nog greeted him with a chuckle.

V’ Lock had to admit, Nog always found the funniest nicknames. He always surprised him with new nicknames, he was very contented, and it meant that Nog considered him as a real friend.

“Oh, you also brought your friend.” Jake said and approached the Vulcan girl, “Nice to meet you, my name is Jake Sisko.” he said, and was about to get his hand closer her so she could shake it, she watched his hand but did not do anything.

“You are the Captain’s son, interesting.” she said but did not return Jake’s handshake, “I am T'luvith.” she said in a cold tone.

Jake put his hand back, showing an embarrassed expression, and giggled nervously.

V 'Lock doubted that she didn’t know human’s traditions or how humans used to greet each others but he also knew that Vulcans were very unemotional, physical contact made them uncomfortable, in particular, a gesture like a handshake could be misunderstood . It was something too intimate. Touching hands was something only Vulcan partners did.

“I am Nog, Jake and V 'Lock’s business partner.” Nog said, smiling confidently.

“Are you an engineer?” Jake asked, “Did V 'Lock already tell you about our project?”

“Yes, he explained it to me in general terms.” she answered.

“Well, we are not very experienced at creating holographic programs, so your help will be appreciated.” Nog said.

And her help would be even more appreciated because it would be completely free, V 'Lock knew that this was another important factor for the Ferengi, he had not yet mentioned how much this work would have costed him but perhaps he was already aware that Vulcan people were not greedy, they did not care about profit. As long as there was logic, they were glad.

“May I take a look at it?” she asked.

“Of course, I show you my father’s work.” Nog answered, inviting her to follow him to the panel.

V’ Lock did not see Mr. Rom anywhere and he suspected he went to work by now.

T'luvith kneeled herself next to the panel and began to check the work.

“Oh, interesting.” she said, “Mr. Rom has already done a lot, but it will be necessary to work continuously to terminate the program by tomorrow.”

“It won’t be a problem for you, Vulcans don’t need to sleep too much like humans, they are resistant and capable.” Nog said, chuckling.

“Are you flattering me?” she asked, raising her eyebrow.

“No, I’m telling the truth.” Nog answered.

“We haven’t actually talked about what to give you in exchange for your help.” Jake said, smiling.

“Ah, I don’t think the young lady is interested in gold.” Nog answered, glaring at Jake.

V 'Lock had no idea what T'luvith could have wished for, what they could offer to her, she accepted without asking anything in return. T'luvith told him that she just wanted to train and expand her knowledge about holographic programs.

“No, I’m not interested in gold.” she answered.

“See? I’ve told you.” Nog said.

“If you’ll have some idea, just tell us.” Jake said with a friendly tone of voice.

“I will keep it in mind.” She told them and then she started working.

“I think we should leave her to her work.” V’ Lock said, “She won’t need us.”

“Okay, I’ve got business to do. I have to speak with my uncle Quark and book a Holo-room for our event.” Nog said, with a professional tone because he always became serious when he talked about business.

“I think I’ll talk with some people about the party and I could even write an article about Halloween and invite them to try this new experience in our new program.” Jake said with enthusiasm.

“Yes, it’s a great idea and a good advertising.” V’ Lock commented, nodding.

“Yes, an efficient marketing strategy.” Nog said, patting Jake’s shoulders, “And you, V’ Lock? What do you do?”

“I don’t know, could I think about the costumes?” he replied, “I should reserve them for the party.”

“Well, I’ve not already decided it, but you could ask Garak if he could prepare various Halloween costumes for us and all the people who will arrive. I don’t think non –human beings will be aware of this celebration and so they could dress up like classical monsters and Halloween creatures. If they don’t have any idea, they could choose from our vast catalogue.” Nog spoke, smirking; he spoke like a real businessman.

“That’s very professional.” Jake said, nodding.

“Yes, interesting.” V’ Lock said.

“Could you please speak low, I am trying to work here.” T'luvith said from behind, her tone was calm.

“Oh, sorry, T'luvith, we’re going away anyhow. ” Jake said, “You can close the program when you finish, we won’t come back here.”

“Yes, see you tomorrow.” Nog said.

“We’ll see later.” V’ Lock told her.

Then the three of them got out the Holodeck and went to accomplish their missions.

* * *

The business gene was written in Nog's DNA so it would not be difficult to convince his uncle to book the Holodeck at a cheap price.

“What? Do you want 30 bars of gold for a single evening?” Nog asked, alarmed.

“Yes, it is a party and you will occupy the holographic room for at least 10 hours, I have to leave my bar open all night to welcome customers who are tired from the party and come here to rest. This costs, Nog.” Quark explained sympathetically, perhaps he thought he had been too generous.

“But 30 bars are too many. It’s not a fair price.” Nog complained.

“It’s a family price; I would have proposed you 40 bars if you were not my nephew. I’m very fond to my family.” Quark chuckled as he cleaned a table.

"How about 25 bars?” Nog suggested, smiling amiably even though he was pretending but he had to convince his uncle at all costs.

“Ah, 35 bars.” Quark replied, looking at him sternly.

“30 gold bars, please, uncle. It’s important.” Nog said, pleading.

“It’s a human celebration… What do you find in it? Are you going to become a human?” Quark rolled his eyes.

“It’s a cool celebration.” Nog answered.

“Cool? Now you also use human slangs.” Quark sighed.

“So, 30 bars?” Nog asked again.

“Ok, 30 bars but you’ll have to work overtime on the weekend for two months.” Quark made his last offer.

“Ok I’m in.” Nog said even though he did not want to work overtime but he could have shared the price with his companions. Every one of them could have paid 10 bars, he would have negotiated on this too.

* * *

Work gratified T'luvith, it relaxed her, especially when she was alone, only with her work tools, the computer and her codes, it was a kind of meditation. Someone would find this thought absurd but many engineers shared her idea.

T'luvith was completely taken by her work that nothing would distract her.

She already knew this human celebration called Halloween because her human stepfather had talked to her about it, he had even tried to convince her to do trick or treat. It was the most illogical proposal she had ever heard. She would not have done it even as a child.

T'luvith’s work proceeded well and she would be able to finish in time, she did not need to sleep and it was not a bothering for her, she knew that she was able to terminate it within the night.

What is that?, she suddenly thought, seeing some Holodeck data that was modifying by itself, as if she had written a wrong code, but she did not put any wrong code, she was so perfectionist and she never did such stupid mistakes.

Then she controlled again the program and everything was right, maybe it was only her imagination but it was highly strange because she was awake, concentrate and careful to any details and so that error must have been real. She checked it out again and corrected it anyway. It could happen. It was better resolve problems now than during the activation of the program.

At least, she supposed everything would be right...

* * *

Some minute ago, the same little error happened even in the central computer of the station, but nobody noticed it because it was so little, insignificant on the surface, a mere miscalculation and so the engineer in charge resolved it without putting a lot of attention.

In a big station like DS9, people were so busy, taken by their duty, that they could not give importance to every single error stat appeared on the computer's monitor, especially when it appeared insignificant and little.

Sometimes, were the simple and irrelevant things, those things that went unnoticed, to become the start of a problem that could be harder and more relevant than how they would look.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment and share your thoughts.

**Author's Note:**

> This chapter was only an introduction of my OC.
> 
> I hope you can find him nice, I like a lot the idea of the hybrid and the contradiction between Vulcans and Betazoids so I've united them in one character. I thought it could be interesting.
> 
> Comment and leave kudos, please!


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